Zimbabwe's
Mugabe makes appeal to investors

HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe made an
appeal to investors Thursday and said laws limiting foreign ownership of
businesses had been misunderstood and should not seen as a
discouragement.

With a unity government in place between Mugabe and his
old rival Morgan Tsvangirai, Zimbabwe is trying to recover from economic
collapse that the president's critics blame on policies such as his seizures
of white-owned farms.

Zimbabwe badly needs foreign funds, but among
concerns for investors in mines and other businesses are empowerment laws
which limit foreign ownership to 49 percent.

"Foreign direct
investment is most welcomed as it brings new technology, capital and new
markets," Mugabe told an investment conference in Zimbabwe that drew foreign
fund managers, financiers, investors and entrepreneurs.

"Such policies as
the indigenisation and economic empowerment act should not be viewed as
obstacles to investment promotion... They should be welcomed as promotive of
the greater participation of our people in the economy."

On land reform,
Mugabe repeated his stance that former colonial ruler Britain was
responsible for paying owners who were stripped of their farms. He blames
Western sanctions for Zimbabwe's economic decline.

Tsvangirai said that
all parties in Zimbabwe recognized land reform was needed but differed on
their approach.

"We are going to conduct a land audit and we will set up
a land commission to address all disputes arising from land reform," he told
the conference, which would itself have been unthinkable before the unity
government was set up in February.

Tsvangirai went to the United
States and Europe last month to woo investors and donors, but the trip
yielded scant funds and put him under increased pressure to persuade Mugabe
to agree to reforms.

No
compensation for land - Mugabe

HARARE - President Robert Mugabe said Thursday his government
will not pay any compensation for land seized by his government over the
past 10 years.

Mugabe accused the largely white Zimbabwean commercial
farmers of siding with the British at a time his government was trying to
apply pressure on the British government to disburse funds to buy land for
resettlement to the previously disadvantaged black population.

"The
responsibility for compensating the farmers rests on the shoulders of the
British government and its allies," Mugabe said.

He was responding to a
question by Commercial Farmers Union (CFU) President, Trevor Gifford, during
the plenary session of an ongoing International Investment conference being
held in Harare.

Gifford asked the Zimbabwean leader when his government
would start paying farmers who have lost their source of livelihoods through
farm takeovers.

According to the CFU, 175 farmers are due to stand trial
for refusing to vacate their land to make way for the new
farmers.

Mugabe, who was not in his usual aggressive tone, accused the
former Tony Blair administration of reneging on British pledges to pay
compensation for repossessed land.

"I told Blair to keep his money
and we were going to keep our land," Mugabe said.

He was adamant it
is enshrined in the Zimbabwean constitution that compensation for land
repossessed by government shall be paid by the British
government.

"We did pay compensation for improvements and
developments.we have honoured that part. This is our stand. It is a British
responsibility," he said.

"The farmers themselves let themselves down.
Instead of supporting us in appealing to Britain, so Britain could realize
that they had this responsibility towards paying compensation, they have
sided with the British."

Mugabe said farmers who were being
approached for land should be willing to cede their farms and join hands
with his government in appealing for compensation.

Mugabe went on to
ask foreign investors to come and invest in Zimbabwe, saying the
establishment of the inclusive government has created a conducive
environment for investment in Zimbabwe.

"Zimbabwe upholds the
sanctity of property rights," Mugabe said in his main address.

"The
formation of the inclusive government has strengthened our stable political
environment, making us more conducive to investment promotion.

"My
government is committed to promoting the rule of law in all its
facets."

Mugabe said farmers approached for land should be willing to
cede their farms and join hands with Britain in appealing for
compensation.

White
farmers to be spared

Article By:Thu, 09 Jul 2009 16:37Zimbabwe's
President Robert Mugabe on Thursday said some white farmers would be spared
under his controversial land reforms and urged Britain to compensate owners
of property seized for redistribution.

"It's not every white farm which
will be taken. Not necessarily," Mugabe said in reply to the leader of the
predominantly-white Commercial Farmers Union (CFU) at a conference to lure
investors.

"The responsibility of compensation rests on the shoulders of
the British government and its allies," he said.

"We pay compensation
for developments and improvements. That's our obligation and we have
honoured that. Above all Zimbabwe upholds the sanctity of property
rights.

"Sure there must be some compensation. Let's join hands and
appeal to the British."

The land reforms launched in 2000 aimed to
resettle blacks on 4000 white-owned commercial farms, but the process was
marred by politically-charged violence.

The scheme has drastically
reduced agricultural production, which once accounted for 40 percent of the
economy, as most of its beneficiaries lacked both farming equipment and
expertise.

Mugabe's statements came as the CFU reported fresh invasions
of white-owned farms.

He accused the farmers of taking sides with the
British, whose relations with Zimbabwe were strained over the land reforms
launched ostensibly to redress historical land imbalances.

"The
farmers have let themselves down," he said. "They have tended to side with
the British."

Mugabe said conditions in Zimbabwe favoured investment
following the formation of a coalition government with his long-time rival
Morgan Tsvangirai and opposition faction leader Arthur
Mutambara.

"The formation of the inclusive government has strengthened
our stable political environment making us more conducive to investment
promotion," he asserted.

The international investment conference
aimed at attracting local and foreign investment will end on
Friday.

Zimbabwe
expects double-digit growth next year: minister

HARARE (AFP) - Zimbabwe is
expected to post double-digit growth starting next year, after a decade of
stunning economic collapse, the planning minister told an investors
conference on Thursday."The economy will enjoy double-digit growth from 2010
onwards. Growth will remain strong for at least the next 10 years," Planning
Minister Elton Mangoma said.

This year the government expects the
economy to grow by four percent.

"We are mindful that the current global
financial crisis imposes certain limitations, but it also presents
opportunities including understanding and re-examinations of international
trade, expanding regional African trade and diversification of the economy,"
Mangoma said.

Zimbabwe's five-month-old unity government launched an
economic recovery scheme in March aiming to revitalise an economy hammered
by a decade of hyperinflation that has impoverished the nation and left half
the population dependent on food aid.

The government is seeking 8.3
billion dollars over three years to revive the economy and pump into
moribund public services, including schools and hospitals.

So far
Zimbabwe has won pledges of over two billion dollars, mainly from African
institutions and China.

Prime Minister Morgan Tsvangirai recently toured
the United States and Europe to try to woo more support, but western
countries say they want long-ruling President Robert Mugabe to make greater
political reforms first.

The international investment conference opened
Wednesday in hopes of attracting local and foreign investment. The meeting
ends on Friday.

Small
Zimbabwe Tobacco Crop Reaches Record Prices

Zimbabwe's annual
tobacco auctions this year were notable for record prices and the second
smallest crop in more than 50 years. Thousands of new small-scale tobacco
farmers failed to grow tobacco this season because neither commercial banks
nor the government had money to lend for inputs such as
fertilizer.

Zimbabwe's 2009 tobacco crop will earn about $160 million
this selling season. The average price was about $3.60 a kilogram. Most
tobacco will be exported to Europe with China now also an important
buyer.

About 50 million kilograms was produced, more than 80 percent of
that grown by the few remaining white farmers on the tiny portions of land
left untouched by President Robert Mugabe's ongoing seizures of white-owned
land.

Until land invasions began in 2000, large-scale white tobacco
growers and growing numbers of black farmers produced more than 220 million
kilograms of tobacco each year. This was the bedrock of Zimbabwe's economy
and the country's largest foreign currency earner.

Farm invasions
cause uncertainty

This year, as farm seizures were stepped up by those
loyal to President Robert Mugabe in the wake of the formation of the unity
government, cash strapped banks refused loans to farmers. The banks said the
current wave of farm invasions resulted in uncertainty about the farmers'
tenure on their land, and that the farms or potential harvests were
therefore no surety for the lenders.

Consequently these farmers sold
their crops to foreign buyers who fund their inputs, such as fertilizer.
Andy Ferreira, outgoing president of the Zimbabwe Tobacco Association says
it is a pity the economy is so difficult, because commercial farmers forced
to forward sell their crops are getting about 20 percent less than prices on
the auction floors in Harare - the largest in the world.

He said
until land tenure was settled and banks felt secure to lend money to
commercial farmers, this system would continue, to the detriment of
Zimbabwe's foreign earnings.

Nowadays, only small-scale farmers sell
at the auction floors, and their numbers dropped to about 8,000 from 15,000;
many who would normally be selling say they were unable to raise loans to
buy inputs.

A small-scale producer in northern Zimbabwe, said his output
was affected this season because he could not borrow enough money to buy
inputs. Ideally, he would like to double his output.

"I am at Karoi,
Hurungwe, I am an old farmer. Last year it was better than this year; and
last year I [planted] one hectare [and] I produced more [kilograms] than
this season. I haven't any inputs," he said.

Some small-scale farmers now
growing tobacco were given white-owned land by President Robert
Mugabe.

New farmers satisfied with prices

One new farmer said he
had a fair season and wants to plant more, but says he needs a loan for his
next crop. He says he grew one hectare of Virginia tobacco, sold it on
auction and was paid well.

"Last year it was similar to this year," he
said. "For this year it is good quality tobacco. Prices for last year and
this year [are] similar. Just because, this year according to my tobacco, it
is selling well. The sales are really quite good. So far I have sold 700 kg
for $3.69 [per kilogram] [and] I am going to plant more."

Despite
increased anti-smoking laws in many parts of the world, and declining
numbers of smokers, Ferreira says Zimbabwe's tobacco is still prized by top
manufacturers of cigarettes.

Many commercial growers have already planted
seedbeds for next year's tobacco crop despite not knowing if they will still
be there to reap the crop for the 2010 selling season.

Villagers remember violence

By The ZimbabweanSHAMVA -
Villagers from Bindura South last week converged at a former Zanu (PF)
torture base to commemorate last year's presidential run-off election
violence. The commemorations, attended by the Bindura South Member of
Parliament Bednock Nyaude, were filled with emotions. During the MP's
speech, villagers were reminded of the trauma they went through during last
year's Zanu (PF) sponsored violence.

Nehemiah Mhembere, who
organised the event, said they chose the former Zanu (PF) base because it
stood as a stark reminder of what happened last year."We chose a spot in
Nyamadzawo Village because we want villagers to remember that the things
that happened cannot be erased. We have sons and daughters who are dead and
disabled, so let us send a message that we are still waiting to be healed,"
said Mhembere.

June 27 has been set aside as a date for Mhembere's ward
to remember the atrocities of 2008. Meanwhile, a Zanu (PF) official who
terrorised Bindura South villagers last year is reported to have sneaked out
of his home at night as he feared reprisals from those he
tortured.

The official, only identified as Gwanzura, claimed to be a
member of the dreaded Central Intelligence Organisation. He rented a bottle
store at Musiwa Growth Point and, during the run up to the June 27 run-off
election, he tortured hundreds of MDC supporters in Ward 16.

Zanu (PF) incites violence

GUTU
- A Zanu (PF) heavyweight has stepped up efforts to intimidate MDC
supporters by mobilizing local structures and inciting acts of violence. The
member of the house of assembly for Gutu West Constituency, Noel Tarirai
Mandebvu, who won his seat through violent means, addressed a rally on June
9 accompanied by Zanu (PF) thugs.

Mandebvu openly
attacked the MDC, saying his party would maintain a tough stance against
them. He claimed that the MDC was trying to destabilize the country by
refusing to release funds to Zanu (PF)."Mandebvu openly chanted slogans
denouncing the MDC and its leader Morgan Tsvangirai. To us it was a direct
violation of the Global Political agreement," said a source from
Gutu.Meanwhile, the Zanu (PF) has attempted bulldoze at least five
special councillors in the Gutu rural district council in a measure
calculated to neutralize the MDC's dominance in the council. The council
chair person, Daniel Jinga, last week said they would not sit back and allow
Zanu (PF) to dictate its terms to the council.

Mugabe drags his feet on by-elections

HARARE - President Robert Mugabe has refused to set a date for
seven by-elections necessary to fill vacant posts in parliament. The crucial
by-elections are widely seen as a barometer of the current popularity
ratings of the three parties in the inclusive government ahead of the 2011
general election.

There are seven vacancies in constituency
seats in Parliament, four in the House of Assembly; and three in the Senate,
all dating back to 2008.The speaker of the House of Assembly, Lovemore Moyo,
said: "All vacancies in the House of Assembly were promptly notified to the
President's Office."Legal experts said the President should have announced
the dates already.The government has not given a satisfactory explanation
for its failure to call the by-elections, in spite of the fact that this has
left the constituencies without representation in Parliament for many
months.Justice and Legal Affairs minister, Patrick Chinamasa was not
immediately available for comment.

Hate speech back in state media

HARARE - The much-reviled Nathaniel Manheru column bounced
back on to The Saturday Herald pages last week after being banished by the
inclusive government on allegations of promoting hate speech. The Other Side
with Nathaniel Manheru column, written by Mugabe's press secretary, George
Charamba, has often helped give an insight into government thinking, while
vilifying the MDC and anybody else who dares to think and act
independently.

(Pictured: George Charamba)

Well-placed
sources told The Zimbabwean that there were plans to bring it back on a
permanent basis in open defiance to the Joint Monitoring and Implementation
Committee, JOMIC, which oversees the implementation of the Global Political
Agreement.

Zanu (PF) wants the column introduced and will, incredibly,
defend itself by arguing that banning it would infringe freedom of
expression rights of the columnist!"The column was brought back to test
the waters. I can assure you that we could see the MDC formations being
dragged into a useless tug-of-war on whether the column should stay or be
removed," said the source.

Ceaser Zvayi has been irregularly penning a
pro-Zanu (PF) article called "Eagle Eye".Last week's Nathaniel Manheru
column appeared to have been designed to pour cold water on Prime Minister
Morgan Tsvangirai's visit to Western capitals and to praise China for a
US$950 million loan facility, the existence of which becomes more doubtful
by the day.

China: When bullets begin to flower, was the title of the
column which generally praised the Asians for a loan of which finance
minister, Tendai Biti, says he is not aware.In it, Charamba confirms
that the Prime Minister's tour was given a propaganda spin in order to
belittle him:

"Zanu (PF)'s propaganda mandarins did not help matters.
Wrestling initiative, they framed the Prime Minister's trip as Mugabe
initiated, as Mugabe defined, a position Tsvangirai is still battling to
shake off."

In the same column, Charamba praises the founder of the
column, Jonathan Nathaniel Moyo, for his attacks on the Prime Minister in a
series of opinion articles in which he said Tsvangirai went to visit Western
countries as "the PM of NGOs".

Zimbabwe reports first case of A/H1N1 flu

HARARE, July 9 (Xinhua) -- Zimbabwe on Thursday
reported the first case of the A/H1N1 flu in the country, according to local
media reports.

Zimbabwe's Minister of Health and Child Welfare
Dr Henry Madzorera is expected to issue a comprehensive statement on the
A/H1N1 flu later in the day following the diagnosis of one local for the
disease.

The local media reports said an 18-year old local
squash player tested positive with the virus when he went to South Africa
for a tournament.

Madzorera confirmed the case. The patient
is still being treated there.

"Yes there is an 18-year old
athlete playing squash who among others was diagnosed with the infection. He
is being treated in South Africa," Madzorera was quoted as saying by the
local media reports.

Madzorera said the athlete was part of a
group that had tested positive and that the Zimbabwe government is now
investigating whether the athlete contracted the disease in Zimbabwe or in
South Africa.

Public health officials have also said another
man who had recently arrived in the country from Britain was also diagnosed
with the A/H1N1 flu and had been quarantined at a home in Harare's Belvedere
suburb.

However, Madzorera could not confirm the second case
although he promised to issue a comprehensive statement on the flu later on
Thursday.

Villagers fined for supporting MDC

ZAKA - Nine villagers were fined by their village head for
supporting an MDC representative during village development committee
elections held here last week. According to a letter written to the local
MP, Festus Dumbu, the local village head, Gilbert Mujakachi, demanded that
the villagers pay R20 for their defiance.

Dumbu had reportedly
advised the villagers not to back the MDC candidate during the elections.
Although The Zimbabwean could not establish the name of the candidate, it is
understood the village head imposed the fine as a measure of disciplining
the villagers.The MDC provincial spokesperson, Tongai Matutu, confirmed the
incident."We went to Zaka on Sunday and we were told about the incident. We
have the story on our desk," he said.

According to the MDC
information and publicity secretary for Masvingo, Dust Zivhave, the case
"mirrors Zanu (PF)'s lack of sincerity".

Call for Zimbabwe's debt cancellation

ZIMBABWE Coalition on Debt and Development (ZIMCODD) has
launched a call for an official audit of Zimbabwe's external debt which is
currently standing at US$4,6 billion. Of the debt approximately 65% (US$3,2
billion) of these external obligations are in
arrears.

ZIMCODD is a coalition of organizations in Zimbabwe to
facilitate citizens' involvement in public policy making and to raise levels
of economic literacy to promote socio-economic justice in the country.
Zimbabwe's debt burden is one of the coalition's key programme
areas.

According to ZIMCODD, Zimbabwe has an unsustainably high level of
external debt, the bulk of which is owed to multilateral funding agencies.
"Most of Zimbabwe's external debt stock is in interest owed in arrears to
the World Bank, the IMF, and the African Development Bank. The country's
indebtedness...has continued to increase largely due to the recapitalization
of interest whilst arrears are escalating due to continued defaults on
principal amounts falling due."

Analysts assert that if the debt is
not reduced in a "consistent and systematic fashion, it could balloon to US$
7 billion by 2011.

New credit lines could also add to this figure
significantly. The issue of the potential illegitimacy of some of Zimbabwe's
debt was also raised given the failed policy advice of the multilaterals to
which a significant portion of the debt is owed.

Moreover, the loan
contraction process in Zimbabwe gives almost exclusive and sweeping
discretionary powers in the contraction of new loans to the President and
the Minister of Finance. This needs to be opened up to citizen involvement
and scrutiny.

In this context, ZIMCODD said it was calling for a
comprehensive debt audit which will establish among other things, the
amounts borrowed, interests accrued, amounts repaid, conditions of lending,
reasons for borrowing, use of funds borrowed, loan beneficiaries, historical
and ecological aspects of the debt.

The findings of the debt audit
would form the basis of the case for either repudiation or cancellation. The
debt audit will help unlock resources currently earmarked for debt servicing
and redirect them towards health service delivery, education, water and
sanitation among other social services which are in dire
state.

Minister of Finance Tendai Biti said the debt burden will place a
"server constrains on the economic recovery prospects if unmonitored,
especially considering that the country requires over US$8,4 billion to
revitalise the economy".

"The resultant debt overhang will result in
furthering the downturn trajectory in foreign direct investments - as
investors fear implicit taxes on return on investments to meet the country's
external debt obligations, thereby diminishing prospects for recovery and
growth," Biti said.

Biti said government in conjunction with a number of
developmental partners who include amongst others, the African Development
Bank Group (ADB) and the macroeconomic and Financial Management Institute of
Eastern and Southern Africa (MEFMI) will from July this year, undertake a
comprehensive assessment of the current and future debt obligations with a
view to formulate an optimal and sustainable debt strategy consistent with
the broader macroeconomic policy objectives of the country's national
development strategy.

"In the short term government is engaging the
International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank and the African Development
Bank with respect to accessing technical assistance support on finding
options on restructuring Zimbabwe's external debt," said Biti.

Biti
said government was also in the process of validating its external debts
with its creditors, which should feed into a debt sustainable
framework.

Biti said the country's economic indicators reflect that
the country was a low income country and subsequently qualifies for the
Highly Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Initiative at the HIPC decision
points.

Upon reclassification to a low income country, Zimbabwe becomes
eligible to benefit from exceptional arrears clearance support from the
World Bank and ADB.

In this regard, Biti said government was in the
process of capacitating the Central Statistical Office with the assistance
of developmental partners to ensure that it produces current national income
and social statistics that are up to date which will form the basis of the
reclassification.

Biti said the country revenue collections had been
steadily rising from January collections of US$4,7 million to US$28,7 in
February. In March revenue collected rose to US$41,7 million to US$51,6 in
April before rising to US$66,8 million on May.

Address by the Minister of Economic Planning

ADDRESS BY THE MINISTER OF ECONOMIC PLANNING AND
INVESTMENT PROMOTION,

HON ELTON MANGOMA

Thursday 09 July
2009

CELEBRATION CENTRE, HARARE

9TH - 10TH JULY
2009

INTRODUCTIONZimbabwe is coming out of a severe economic
downturn. The Global Political (GPA) signed on 15 September 2008 and the
formulation of an inclusive Government in the middle of February 2009 has
given renewed hope for Zimbabwe to make a proper start to sustainable
economic recovery.

As the three principals have shown earlier today, we
are conscious that, when recovering from such a decade of negative growth,
stagnation and virtual collapse in the economy, emphasis on stable,
democratic and developmental nature of the state is critical to sustainable
investment.

2. THE SHORT TERM EMERGENCY RECOVERY PROGRAMME (STERP) was
adopted by Government in March 2009, with the aim of stabilising the economy
and attend to the democratisation reforms as contained in the GPA. The
stabilisation issues cover: -

· Implementation of a growth oriented
recovery programme.

· Increasing capacity utilisation in all sectors of
the economy with the consequential increase in job.

· Ensuring
adequate availability of essential commodities.

· Rehabilitation of
collapsed social, health and education sectors.

· Ensuring adequate water
supply and safe sanitation.

3. A target was set to improve the capacity
utilisation in the economy, from the less than 10% in December 2008 to 60%
by December 2009.

I am encouraged by the impressive progress which has
been made with capacity utilisation around 25% by the end of June
2009

4. The enablers for this include:

a) The securing of lines of
credit to the economic sectors to ensure that retailers and industrialists
restocked, acquired raw materials, undertook necessary repairs and
maintenance and mines be re-opened.

b) Improving internal electricity
generation in the short term requires funding for increased coal production
by Hwange Colliery Company and

· Repairs to the Generation units at
Hwange Power Station.

· Repairs and maintenance to the electricity
transmission system. Funders have been indentified and a significant amount
of work has been done. The Minister of Energy will give you more
detail.

c) Transport

The road and rail network have to be
functional. The Minister of Transport will give you more detail.

d)
Water and Sewerage

There is need to provide adequate water for domestic
and industrial use. Without adequate water industries cannot function
properly.

This must be accompanied by functional sewerage reticulation
and waste disposal systems.

The Minister of Local Government will put
on more flesh.

e) There is need for a robust IT backbone. This will give
us the same platform as in the first world. Again the Minister will enrich
you.

5. INVESTMENT

The Inclusive Government recognises the central
importance of investment as a key ingredient for a sustainable and equitable
economic development of the country.

6. The inclusive Government also
realised that its capacity to raise adequate funding for its Public Sector
Investment Programme (PSIP) was limited.

The resultant lack of
implementing the PSIP would severely constraint the capacity of the economy
to grow. To overcome this critical hurdle, the Inclusive Government agreed
to open investment in the Public Sector to the Private sector. The
interdependent and complementary engagement of the government and the
private sector is critical.

7. The inclusive Government is therefore
inviting all investors, both domestic and foreign to join hands with it, in
driving the Zimbabwe Economy forward.

8. Ladies and gentlemen we are
aware that investors, as part of their evaluation look at three broad
categories, i.e. the Political environment, the macro and micro economic
environment and the legislative framework. This conference addresses all
these issues.

It is my hope that all delegates, at the conclusion of the
conference will be satisfied that Zimbabwe is the BEST Investment
Destination.

These are some of the reasons.

9. MACROECONOMIC
ENVIRONMENT

The inclusive Government has adopted some of the most robust
macroeconomic policies. The inflation scourge, which many economists
predicted will take years to tame, was dealt with in a matter of weeks. The
economy, in real money has awakened and gathering pace. The outturn is
predicted to be growth of between 3 to 5% by year end and inflation of below
5%.

10. PRICE CONTROLS

Price controls have been removed. There is
open marketing in agricultural commodities and subsidies to parastatals have
been stopped.

The aim is to have lower prices that are determined by the
market through competitive action, productivity, economies of scale and use
of technology. The market for our products extends beyond our
borders.

11. NATURAL RESOURCES

Zimbabwe is endowed with natural
resources both on and in the ground.

In the ground there is a variety of
minerals in good quantities and concentration.

The Minister of Mines
will go to town on this.

Wildlife is abundant including the BIG FIVE for
those with a passion for eco-tourism. We host one of the seven wonders of
the world. There is an excellent opportunity for investing in Tourism. Again
the Minister of Tourism will showcase this.

Ladies and gentlemen, as
the leadership has already pointed out, we are recovering from a decade of
slow down in the macro-economy As we surge ahead in addressing our key
challenges, it is important that we unlock value that resides in us as a
natural resource rich nation, harmonizing our human capital and turning the
country into a sustainable market for production, distribution and
consumption of goods and services provided by private and public
investment.

As we construct the new tenets and hall ways of a
developmental state, a state that is at ease with the private sector and
with civil society, all of us, need to know that sustainable ( human)
development is a path way to getting our challenges addressed. The commonly
used definition of this term is the one coined by the Brutland Commission
report of 1987 which defined it as;

"development that meets the needs
of the present generation without compromising the ability of future
generations to meet their own needs. Sustainable human development puts
people at the centre of the development process, and its central tenet
involves the creation of an enabling environment where people can enjoy
long, healthy and creative lives.

"Sustainable human development is
pro-people, pro-jobs, and pro-nature. It gives the highest priority to
poverty reduction, productive employment, social integration, and
environmental regeneration. It brings human numbers into balance with the
coping capacities of societies and the carrying capacities of nature.It also
recognizes that not much can be achieved without a dramatic improvement in
the status of women and the opening of all opportunities to women as a key
target group on of national recovery strategies. "

12.
PEOPLE

Zimbabwe has the second best literacy rate in Africa, second to
Tunisia. We are committed to not only revive education, but to invest
considerably in education. We have very intelligent people and we have the
basic infrastructure that will allow us to train experts for our needs and
the rest of Africa and indeed the world.

We have one of the best work
ethic in the world. The people of Zimbabwe are warm and peace loving. The
combination of the above provides any investor a highly productive
workforce. For any investor looking at the region as the market, Zimbabwe is
the place to be.

In other words, our investment trajectory must make
central universal social protection and investment in human capital for
purposes of re-industrialization. It is a pivotal strategy in domestic
resource mobilization, national industrialization and creating sustainable
development.

13. INVOLVEMENT

The people of Zimbabwe are full
of enterprise. When they look around they see all these natural resources
around them. They yearn to be involved in the economic development of their
country. They do not want to be guests at their wedding.

This
involvement is in various forms ranging from as employees:

·
Co-shareholders

· Sub-contractors

· In the supply chain

·
In the marketing chain

Investments that involve Zimbabweans to the
greatest extend, allows for more rapid and sustainable growth. Priority and
preference will be given to investments and tenderers whose activities
involve Zimbabweans, which includes the small and medium enterprises sector.
Small and Medium scale enterprises are the engine of our recovery. We need
to deliberately invest in this sector.

14. AGRICULTURE

The
country has the best combination of climate, soils and rainfall for
commercial agriculture. Investment in agriculture must be guided by the need
to achieve increased productivity whilst protecting the environment and
creating new jobs. Agriculture development, just as infrastructure, can
unlock millions of jobs, and create a basis for national and social
cohesion.

We are aware that the sustainable funding of agriculture
requires the existence of a bankable "security of tenure." This matter will
be talked on by the Minister of Lands.

Investing in agriculture will
be part of our broader industrialization strategy. Agriculture must in the
near future stimulate downstream and upstream industries (agro-based or
agro-supportive.)

15. ECONOMIC GROWTH

The economy will enjoy
double digit growth from 2010 onwards. Growth will remain strong for at
least the next ten years. The causes of this growth are:

· All the
factors mentioned above.

· The rebound / claw back of the economy to
where it used to be.

· The added and widespread infrastructure
development including a robust IT backbone. The of Minister of Information
and Communication technology will speak more about this issue.

·
Deliberate investment in Science and Technology for purposes of catching up
and building a sustainable competitive edge.

· Zimbabwe sits in the
middle of two regional markets - SADC and COMESA. It becomes the best place
to take advantage of these markets.

· The South African Power Pool and
electricity connectivity is in this country.

Ladies and gentlemen, we
are mindful that the current Global Financial crisis imposes certain
limitations, but it also presents opportunities including understanding and
re-examination of international trade architecture, expanding regional intra
-African trade and diversification of the economy, the importance of
Research and Development, public and private sector leadership, among other
things ,so let us not mourn about the Global Financial Crisis and other
crises, but let us look at opportunists like good optimists.

Zimbabwe
is now officially open for Investment by both the local and international
investors. The time to get there is NOW.

Geneva, Switzerland — Rhino poaching worldwide is poised to
hit a 15-year-high driven by Asian demand for horns, according to new
research.

Poachers in Africa and Asia are killing an ever increasing
number of rhinos—an estimated two to three a week in some areas—to meet a
growing demand for horns believed in some countries to have medicinal value,
according to a briefing to a key international wildlife trade body by WWF, the
International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and their affiliated
wildlife trade monitoring network TRAFFIC.The impact in
Africa

An estimated three rhinos were illegally killed each
month in all of Africa from 2000-05, out of a population of around 18,000. In
contrast, 12 rhinoceroses now are being poached each month in South Africa and
Zimbabwe alone, the three groups told the 58th meeting of the Convention on
International Trade in Endangered Species Standing Committee this week in
Geneva.

“Illegal rhino horn trade to destinations in Asia is driving the
killing, with growing evidence of involvement of Vietnamese, Chinese and Thai
nationals in the illegal procurement and transport of rhino horn out of Africa,”
the briefing states.The impact in
Asia

Meanwhile, rhino poaching is also problematic in Asia.
About 10 rhinos have been poached in India and at least seven in Nepal since
January alone—out of a combined population of only 2,400 endangered
rhinos.

“Rhinos are in a desperate situation,” said Dr. Susan Lieberman,
Director of the Species Programme, WWF-International. “This is the worst rhino
poaching we have seen in many years and it is critical for governments to stand
up and take action to stop this deadly threat to rhinos worldwide. It is time to
crack down on organized criminal elements responsible for this trade, and to
vastly increase assistance to range countries in their enforcement
efforts.”

Almost all rhino species are listed in CITES (the Convention on
Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) in Appendix I, which means
that any international trade of any rhino parts for commercial purposes is
illegal.

“Increased demand for rhino horn, alongside a lack of law
enforcement, a low level of prosecutions for poachers who are actually arrested
and increasingly daring attempts by poachers and thieves to obtain the horn is
proving to be too much for rhinos and some populations are seriously declining,”
said Steven Broad, Executive Director of TRAFFIC.

The situation is
particularly dire in Zimbabwe where such problems are threatening the success of
more than a decade’s work of bringing rhino populations back to healthy levels.

For example, earlier this week a park ranger arrested with overwhelming
evidence against him for having killed three rhinos in the Chipinge Safari Area,
was acquitted without any satisfactory explanation for the verdict. Similarly,
in September 2008, a gang of four Zimbabwean poachers who admitted to killing 18
rhinos were also freed in a failed judiciary process.

The briefing
concludes that governments need “an accurate and up-to-date picture of the
status, conservation and trade in African and Asian rhinoceroses, as well as the
factors driving the consumption of rhinoceros horn, so that firm international
action can be taken to arrest this immediate threat to rhinoceros populations
worldwide.”

“Rhino populations in both Africa and Asia are being
seriously threatened by poaching and illegal trade,” said Dr Jane Smart,
Director of IUCN’s Biodiversity Conservation Group. “IUCN and its African and
Asian Rhino Specialist Groups are working hard to gather data and information on
rhinos so that CITES parties can make informed decisions and ensure that rhinos
are still here for generations to come.”

The 58th meeting of the CITES
Standing Committee is being held in Geneva from 6 -10 July. This issue will be
further discussed at the 15th meeting of the Conference of the Parties to CITES,
which will be held in Doha, Qatar March 13-25,
2010.